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First Look: FN Five-seveN MRD

A COLD WAR CARTRIDGE THAT HAS FOUND NEW LIFE IN RECENT YEARS, FN HAS GIVEN THEIR FLAGSHIP PISTOL A HUGE UPGRADE PACKAGE

With over 25-years of service, the FN Five-seveN is a popular pistol for handgun hunting, self-defense, and blasting at soda cans. 

For almost that entire time the FN Five-seveN was basically the only pistol that chambered 5.7x28mm, although that changed in the last couple of years.

Not one to be left behind, FN has a new version of the pistol – the FN Five-seveN MRD – made with major improvements to their classic pistol to keep up with the times and bring it more in line with what their other handguns offer.

The biggest change is the addition of a red dot mounting point! Using a plate system for mounting similar to what FN uses on the FN 509 and 502, these plates allow you to mount basically any of the modern popular micro red dots.

FN states that “The system is compatible with most common miniature red dot sights including the Leupold DeltaPoint Pro, Trijicon RMR, Vortex Optics, Burris FastFire series, Docter Optics, and more.” And that the FN Five-seveN will ship with all of the plates and mounting hardware needed.

FN Five-seveN MRD
FN Five-seveN MRD

The rest of the upgrades sound minor but make a major difference in how the gun feels and controls.

Enhanced slide serrations and cocking ridges on the rear of the slide, a new design for grip checkering making it more like the 509’s grip, and a recontouring of the rear backstrap gives a better and more natural point of aim for the shooter.

My favorite of the ergonomic changes, the magazine release has been enlarged and reshaped slightly to make dropping the magazine faster and easier.

The FN Five-seveN MRD will be available in both Black and FN-signature FDE (just like the original FN Five-seveN).

5.7x28mm

The low-recoil and high penetration of 5.7x28mm were originally designed to defeat Soviet body armor in the late 1980s but never saw mass military adopted due to the end of the cold war.

But that never stopped it from being a popular civilian cartridge! While arguably less practical than calibers like 9mm, .45 ACP, or even .380 ACP the 5.7x28mm delivers unprecedented range, capacity, and accuracy to a handgun platform.

5.7x28mm ammo for FN Five-seveN MRD
5.7x28mm ammo for FN Five-seveN MRD

FN Five-seveN MRD Specs:

  • CALIBER: 5.7x28mm
  • OPERATION: Delayed blowback, Single-action only
  • MAG CAPACITY: 10 or 20 Rd.
  • WEIGHT: 25.2 oz. (without mag)
  • BARREL LENGTH: 4.8″
  • OVERALL LENGTH: 8.2″
  • TWIST RATE: 1:9″ RH
  • HEIGHT: 5.6″
  • WIDTH: 1.35″
  • TRIGGER PULL: 4.4 – 7.87 lb.
  • SIGHT RADIUS: 7.0″
  • MSRP: $1,450

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